European women shop more often online, but men spend more

Women account for 58.9% of purchases at European online retailers, but men spend more and are more likely to pay with a credit card than women, according to a report from Germany-based payment processor Deutsche Card Services, part of the Deutsche Bank Group.

“Overall, online purchasing and payment has become more of an everyday occurrence for customers, who use the Internet more and more for buying household goods,” says Jens Mahlke, a member of the management board of Deutsche Card Services in introducing the company’s “E-Retail Report 2010.” The report is based on an analysis of 7.5 million online purchases processed by Deutsche Card Services between October 2008 and September 2009.

During that period, 66% of Europeans shopped online, versus 45% in 2003, the report says.

Complete information on the leading e-retailers in Europe can be found in the recently published Top 300 Europe from Internet Retailer.

It was the increasingly everyday nature of online shopping, and not the economic recession during that period, that accounted for the decline in the average order to 80.37 (US$113.89) euros from 89.43 euros (US$126.73) during the preceding 12-month period, the Deutsche Bank report says.

Other highlights from the report include:

• Women account for 64.1% of online purchases in Germany and 53.8% in the United Kingdom, but only 44.1% in other European countries.

• European men spend 93.12 euros (US$131.95) on an average web purchase, versus 68.65 euros (US$97.28) for women.

• Consumers in the United Kingdom paid with credit cards 63.15% of the time and debit cards 36.83%, while German shoppers only used credit cards 36.89% of the time, also heavily using direct debit from their bank accounts (33.07%) and offline methods such as cash on delivery (26.41%.). Credit cards accounted for 83.07% of the purchases made by consumers in other European countries.

• Men paid with credit cards 59.9% of the time, versus only 48.9% for women. Women used offline payment methods much more, 26.4% to 10.2%.

• The average purchase at a European e-retailer by a consumer from Germany was 61.18 euros ($US86.69), from the United Kingdom 89.43 euros ($US126.73), from elsewhere in Europe 125.03 euros ($US177.17) and from outside of Europe 123.71 euros ($US175.30).

• Monday is the strongest day of the week for online shopping, but Germans shop more on Sunday than other Europeans. More than 60% of European e-retail transactions take place between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.